Bitcoin Rails | Isabel Foxen Duke

Isabel Foxen Duke

Deep dives into Bitcoin-native technologies, protocol development, cryptography and more.

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August 27 · 1 hr 45 min
Bitcoin's Leading Post-Quantum Signature Proposal | CONDUITION
The first fully specified post-quantum signature scheme for Bitcoin has been proposed to the Bitcoin mailing list. The proposal introduces a full specification for “SHRINCS,” a hash-based signature scheme initially conceived by Jonas Nick and Mikhail Kudinov of Blockstream Research — with specification details added by new co-authors Conduition, Remix7531 and BIP 360 co-author Ethan Heilman. Today, I’m honored to share a full whiteboard explanation of the scheme by its co-author Conduition, as well as thorough discussion of the scheme’s key tradeoffs when compared to Bitcoin’s existing elliptic-curve signatures and competing post-quantum alternatives. In more detail, this interview includes: — A full whiteboard walkthrough of the scheme’s key components and its relationship to the NIST-standardized scheme SPHINCS+ — SHRINCs’ introduction of a compact stateful path - yes, I said stateful 🌶️ — Whiteboard explanations of all relevant cryptographic subschemes, including FORS, WOTS+C, and XMSS — Thorough discussion of the scheme’s tradeoffs and implications for Bitcoin’s existing functionality If you have a vested interest in understanding what may be the future signature scheme protecting Bitcoin transactions in a post-quantum world, this episode is a must-watch. WARNING: this episode is fairly technical — don't beat yourself up if you don't catch everything, or need to watch it a few times to grok the details. This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you by: LayerTwo Labs @LayerTwoLabs — developing research, software, and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on @SuiNetwork — a primitive for executing Bitcoin DeFi transactions, without having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox @BitBoxSwiss — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount
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August 25 · 1 hr 7 min
The Case For Lattice-Based Signatures in Bitcoin | CHARLES GUILLEMET
To date, post-quantum Bitcoin discussions have largely centered on which digital signature schemes offer the strongest cryptographic security against a quantum adversary. But cryptographic assumptions are only one dimension of security. Different signature schemes introduce different implementation and operational risks. How should Bitcoin weigh cryptographic conservatism against the complexity required to deploy that cryptography safely? While hash-based signatures are often favored for their conservative assumptions, CTO of Ledger, Charles Guillemet argues that evaluating primitives in isolation can obscure consequential risks at the systems level. Stateful hash-based schemes, in particular, introduce state-management requirements where operational or user error can have catastrophic consequences —despite their conservative cryptographic foundations. In this interview, Charles and I examine the tradeoffs of hash-based signatures and his case for greater consideration of lattice-based alternatives, i.e. ML-DSA. A very juicy episode for anyone seriously assessing Bitcoin's post-quantum design landscape. This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you by: LayerTwo Labs — developing research, software, and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on Sui Network — a primitive for executing Bitcoin DeFi transactions, without having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount
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August 7 · 1 hr 32 min
Expecting Hardforks | PAUL SZTORC
Paul Sztorc founder and CEO of LayerTwo Labs and author of Bitcoin Improvement Proposals 300 and 301 (Drivechains), has been one of Bitcoin's most persistent—and controversial—thinkers, advocating for merge-mined sidechains as a way to dramatically expand Bitcoin's functionality while preserving the security of the base layer. Following our previous episode introducing his proposed Bitcoin hard fork, eCash, we discuss how the project has evolved in recent months, what to expect when the fork launches on mainnet, and Paul's perspectives on today's Layer 2 landscape and the soon-to-activate BIP 110 soft fork. An entertaining, popcorn-style conversation with one of Bitcoin's most unconventional thinkers, this episode offers diverse—and at times irreverent—commentary on some of the most important technical debates shaping Bitcoin's future. This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you by: LayerTwo Labs — developing research, software, and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on Sui Network — a primitive for executing Bitcoin DeFi transactions, without having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount
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July 28 · 1 hr 30 min
The Future of Bitcoin Banking | ALEX LEISHMAN
I first came across River during the 2020 bull market. At the time, it felt like one of the quieter players in the space—not as visible as Coinbase or Kraken, and less talked about than its Bitcoin-only competitor, Swan, which was dominating Bitcoin Twitter and investing heavily in KOL marketing at the time. My impression was that River had made a different bet: prioritizing product and security over rapid customer acquisition. In hindsight, that strategy paid off. As exchange and custody failures shook the industry during the 2022 bear market, River emerged as one of the most trusted names in Bitcoin. River CEO Alex Leishman joins me to discuss the technical, operational, and commercial decisions that have differentiated the company—and why many of those decisions have influenced the way the industry thinks about Bitcoin custody today. In more detail, we discuss: Why River chose to remain Bitcoin-only despite the short-term revenue tradeoffs The philosophical differences between Bitcoin banks and trader-driven crypto exchanges Why River manages its own custody stack—and what actually matters when choosing a Bitcoin custodian A recap of the industry's biggest custody failures: what went wrong and how to avoid repeating those mistakes How Bitcoin custody has evolved over the past decade—and how it may need to evolve again in a post-quantum world This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you by: LayerTwo Labs — developing research, software, and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on Sui Network — a primitive for executing Bitcoin DeFi transactions, without having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount
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July 14 · 1 hr 43 min
Zero-Knowledge Proofs For Post-Quantum Bitcoin | BENEDIKT BÜNZ
While many Bitcoiners remain hopeful the network will embrace zero-knowledge proofs for protocol-level use cases, practical adoption has remained limited outside of BitVM and a handful of experimental proposals. Most of the world’s ZKP research has circled around Ethereum and other ecosystems, where significant resources have been dedicated to advancing these systems, particularly for scaling and privacy applications. One of the most notable contributors to this research is Benedikt Bünz — professor of cryptography at NYU and collaborator of Dan Boneh, who together inarguably form one of the strongest blockchain-applied cryptography teams in the world. The pair recently announced they’ll be leading the new post-quantum cryptography unit localhost research — the first dedicated PQ research effort within a major Bitcoin development organization. With Benedikt leading the charge on the use of zero-knowledge proofs for post-quantum mitigation, the question emerges: will the post-quantum transition be the catalyst to finally bring zero-knowledge proofs to Bitcoin's core protocol? In more details, Benedikt and I discuss: Why ZKPs haven’t been widely adopted by the Bitcoin technical community — and why the threat of quantum computers may change that posture going forward How ZKPs could be used for signature batching to address larger post-quantum signatures in Bitcoin’s post-quantum era Why Bitcoiners will likely prioritize hash-based signatures as an initial post-quantum scheme — rather than more efficient but less proven alternatives (e.g. lattice-based) How ZKPs have evolved over the last decade and may finally be ready for Bitcoin’s strict requirements around trust assumptions Why Benedikt and Dan are teaming up with localhost research to create the first post-quantum cryptography unit within a major Bitcoin development organization + what they hope to accomplish This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you by: LayerTwo Labs — developing research, software, and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on Sui Network — a primitive for executing Bitcoin DeFi transactions, without having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount
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July 7 · 1 hr 49 min
The Birth of Flare Gas Mining | STEPHEN BARBOUR
The first public player to deploy Bitcoin miners at oil and gas production sites, Stephen Barbour is broadly credited for popularizing the idea that stranded natural gas could be used to power Bitcoin mining. By converting methane that would otherwise be vented or flared into productive economic value, this approach became a prominent counterargument to claims that Bitcoin mining is inherently harmful to the environment—challenging one of the most pervasive anti-Bitcoin narratives of the 2020 bull run. More broadly, bringing miners directly to the source of energy helped redefine Bitcoin mining as a flexible energy consumer—positioning miners as load-balancing tools and creating new economic opportunities for one of the most essential industries in the world: Oil & Gas. This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you by: LayerTwo Labs — developing research, software, and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on Sui Network — a primitive for executing Bitcoin DeFi transactions, without having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount
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July 1 · 1 hr 15 min
The Politics of Post-Quantum Bitcoin | NIC CARTER
Less than nine months ago, investor and researcher Nic Carter sparked one of the most heated debates in Bitcoin's recent history — when he published a series of essays arguing that the network should prepare for its post-quantum transition sooner rather than later. While the essays broadly persuaded investors and institutions, many of Bitcoin's technical leaders dismissed them as alarmist — that is, until Google's quantum resource estimates were updated just a few months later. Crediting Google's paper with "shifting the Overton Window" on quantum and strengthening the case for post-quantum preparation, Nic shares his thoughts on the delicate politics surrounding this transition — and how he believes a quantum attack, and response, could potentially play out in practice. In more detail, this special episode of Bitcoin Rails X MARA Foundation TV covers: •⁠ ⁠How a quantum attack against Bitcoin, and Bitcoin's response, could unfold in practice •⁠ ⁠Whether a state actor could facilitate "benevolent" quantum recovery without requiring a contentious fork •⁠ ⁠The constitutional tradeoffs posed by abandoned quantum-vulnerable coins, including Satoshi's Coins •⁠ ⁠How Bitcoin's post-quantum transition could permanently reshape the network's governance culture
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June 23 · 1 hr 21 min
Not Your Keys, Not Your AI | ERIK CASON & JESSE POSNER
As language models evolve into extensions of memory, judgment, and decision-making—questions of ownership, privacy, and autonomy become increasingly difficult to ignore. In this interview, Vora founders Erik Cason and Jesse Posner share why the future of AI will look very different depending on our ability to do one thing: maintain self-custody of our personal data—with private keys, just like Bitcoin. A conversation about who controls the systems shaping human cognition, and how we can protect ourselves with the same ethos we protect our Bitcoin—this interview covers: Why AI is the most intimate technology ever created + the specific risks of centralized AI systems controlling sensitive personal information How Bitcoin's self-custody model provides a framework for thinking about data ownership in the AI age (Not Your Keys, Not Your Mind) Why data sovereignty may become one of the defining technological and political questions of the coming decades How you can protect yourself and your personal information from centralized AI risks—including data leaks, political manipulation and more. This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you by my sponsors: LayerTwo Labs — developing research, software, and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on Sui Network — a primitive for executing Bitcoin DeFi transactions, without having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount
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June 16 · 1 hr 28 min
BIP 110 & The Future of Soft Forks | SUPER TESTNET
One of Bitcoin's most prolific experimental developers, Super Testnet is known for building software at the frontier of Bitcoin research — including notable contributions to BitVM, Drivechains, Lightning, and numerous prototypes that have pushed the boundaries of Bitcoin's design space. More recently, he's become a prominent participant in discussions surrounding BIP 110, a proposed soft fork intended to restrict transaction patterns associated with Ordinal inscriptions. While Super broadly agrees with the proposal's underlying goals, he argues its current restrictions are overly broad and could impact "legitimate" monetary uses of Bitcoin. These concerns led him to share a User-Rejected Soft Fork proposal last week, creating a rare case study in how Bitcoin's consensus rules evolve in practice. In more detail, Super Testnet & I discuss: BIP 110, and why developers disagree over transaction filtering Soft fork activation through a historical lens Miner-Activated and User-Activated Soft Forks + the hybrid strategy proposed by BIP 110 advocates Super's User-Rejected Soft Fork proposal and its game theoretical implications for BIP 110 activation Novel signaling mechanisms for BIP 110 + their implications for the future of hashrate markets This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you by my sponsors: LayerTwo Labs — developing research, software, and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on Sui Network — a primitive for executing Bitcoin Defi transactions, without having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount
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June 4 · 58 min
Bitcoin's threshold for trust-minimization—without a soft fork | SAM BLACKSHEAR
Some of the most impressive technical and commercial leaders in digital assets emerged from what insiders call the "Libra Mafia" — the team assembled by Meta to build Libra (later Diem). Though the project ultimately succumbed to regulatory pressure, it produced a generation of founders and engineers who went on to shape the industry, including Sam Blackshear, a leading expert in blockchain programming languages and CTO of Mysten Labs. In this episode of Bitcoin Rails, Sam joins me to discuss: why Mysten Labs has turned its focus toward Bitcoin + why Sam leans conservative on soft-fork changes to Bitcoin script what makes a strong crypto programming language + why EVM is missing the mark\ why trust minimization remains the critical technical challenge standing between Bitcoin and broader DeFi adoption Why Mysten Lab's new Hashi architecture may be the most trust-minimized architecture for Bitcoin "bridging" without a soft fork This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you by: LayerTwo Labs — developing research, software, and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on Sui Network — a primitive for executing Bitcoin Defi transactions, without having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount
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May 27 · 1 hr 22 min
Bitcoin's 3 Biggest Challenges | NEHA NARULA
Neha Narula is the Director of the MIT Digital Currency Initiative, where she focuses on Bitcoin research and the broader design tradeoffs of decentralized money systems. Her work often centers on what Bitcoin gets right—and where it runs into hard limits—especially around scaling, decentralization, and how systems behave as global demand increases. In this interview, Neha and I explore longer-term risks to Bitcoin—including advancements in quantum computing and the implications of a diminishing block subsidy—as well as the ongoing challenge of scaling Bitcoin without losing access to self-custody. A thoughtful conversation on how Bitcoin may change in the coming years, we also explore its social and governance dynamics—including tensions within the development community over protocol changes, scaling philosophies, and the future direction of the system. This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you by: LayerTwo Labs — developing research, software, and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on Sui Network— a primitive for executing Bitcoin Defi transactions, without having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount
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May 20 · 1 hr 44 min
Post-Quantum Cryptography For Bitcoin | DAN BONEH
One of the most prolific and influential cryptographers in the world, it’s difficult to fully quantify the impact that Dan Boneh has had on Bitcoin and digital assets more broadly. Through both his own research and his mentorship of some of the space’s most important contributors — e.g. Andrew Poelstra, Benedikt Bunz and Robin Linus — few people have done more to shape the cryptographic foundations underlying modern blockchains and digital finance. More recently, Dan co-authored Google’s widely discussed paper, “Securing Elliptic Curve Cryptocurrencies against Quantum Vulnerabilities,” which reduced prior estimates of the resources required to run Shor’s algorithm against the elliptic-curve cryptography used by Bitcoin. The paper reignited debate around quantum computing timelines and the long-term security assumptions behind modern cryptocurrencies. In this episode of Bitcoin Rails, Dan and I discuss the current state of quantum computing, its potential implications for Bitcoin, and how he believes the Bitcoin community should think about preparing for a post-quantum future over the coming decade and beyond. And yes, Dan shares his take on the “when quantum” question in the interview, among other key perspectives. This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you by my NEW sponsors: LayerTwo Labs — developing research, software, and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on Sui Network — a primitive for executing Bitcoin Defi transactions, without having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount
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May 12 · 59 min
Breaking Down Digital Payments | DAVID MARCUS
Few people have had a closer view of the evolution of digital money than Lightspark CEO David Marcus. After helping scale PayPal and leading Meta’s ambitious—but highly scrutinized—cryptocurrency project Libra/Diem, Marcus has spent years navigating some of the toughest challenges in the payments industry, in both traditional and digital assets. Marcus more recently turned his focus to Bitcoin with Lightspark, exploring the limits of Lightning payments and building his own Bitcoin layer-2, Spark. After the regulatory challenges of Libra/Diem, Marcus shares why Bitcoin is the only digital assets network he wants to build payments systems on going forward — and why non-Bitcoin payments systems could potentially lead to a "dystopian future" long-term. In this interview, David and I dive into: What really happened with Libra/Diem—and why regulators stepped in so forcefully Why Marcus transitioned into Bitcoin, and why working on centralized digital assets will always carry regulatory risk The “dystopian future” of payments systems settling on “corp chains,” and why this is a real risk for our financial system How Lightspark plans to continue developing Lightning as an interoperability layer, while developing its own statechains-based L2 for end-user experiences This is the most comprehensive conversation I’ve had on the challenges—and opportunities—of using Bitcoin as a payments system. If you want to more deeply understand Bitcoin as a medium of exchange, there are few people better equipped to share insights on the topic. This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you by my NEW sponsors: LayerTwo — developing research, software, and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on Sui Network — a primitive for executing Bitcoin Defi transactions, without having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount
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May 5 · 1 hr 18 min
Post-Quantum Bitcoin Signatures (+ their tradeoffs) | ETHAN HEILMAN & JONAS NICK
According to BIP 360 co-author, Ethan Heilman, Bitcoin needs a minimum of two soft forks to become quantum resistant: P2MR (or an output type that can safely execute PQ signatures) + a post-quantum checksig (signature scheme). Ethan and the BIP 360 team (including myself and Hunter Beast) introduced the P2MR part via a BIP 360 update late last year—but the question remains, what’s the most appropriate PQ signature scheme for Bitcoin? They all have substantive tradeoffs, but hash-based signatures seem to be leading technical discourse—likely due to recent optimizations by Jonas Nick and the broader Blockstream⁩ research team. It was an honor to sit down with both of these men - arguably the two most influential and productive cryptographers in Bitcoin quantum mitigation right now - for an in-depth review of the leading PQ signature schemes and a temperature check on Bitcoin’s post-quantum planning process. TBH, if you want to skip the noise and jump straight to the signal on quantum, this is the interview to watch. In this episode, we discuss: What needs to happen at the soft fork, infra and mitigation levels to fully quantum-harden Bitcoin Recent updates to BIP 360 + breakdown of the leading hash-based signatures schemes for Bitcoin (SHRINCS + SHRIMPS) Why we may actually get consensus around a stateful scheme for Bitcoin Comparisons of hash-based signatures vs Lattice and Isogeny-based schemes Assessing the risks of both waiting too long, and acting too fast (and why quantum is a better threat to be facing than a potential classical attack) This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you by my NEW sponsors: LayerTwo Labs — developing research, software and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on Sui Network — a primitive for executing Bitcoin Defi transactions, with having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount.
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April 24 · 1 hr 27 min
DRIVECHAINS AUTHOR TO HARDFORK BITCOIN I with PAUL SZTORC
Paul Sztorc is one of the most controversial figures in Bitcoin—and he’s about to pull off one of his most controversial moves of all: a full-blown Bitcoin hardfork. Actuating his vision of “e-cash,” as the new protocol is called, Paul is pushing forward a new Drivechains-enabled Bitcoin experience—citing governance challenges and a “broken soft fork process” as reasons for the move. “If BIP300/301 was activated in Bitcoin, we would stop,” says Paul Sztorc—adding, “it’s an irony that the soft fork was invented because the hard fork was too difficult.” In this interview, I asked Paul all the difficult questions you can imagine—and ultimately found myself sympathizing with much of his defense. Regardless of one’s personal politics, this interview sheds light on the challenges we face in Bitcoin governance as a whole—and may be worth reviewing to better understand the political statement (ne—political artwork?) that Paul’s work represents. In this episode, Paul shares: Why he’s making the bold move to hard fork — and the various levels of risk he’s assuming in the process. His frustration with the Bitcoin soft fork process and why, regardless of the risks, it “may be time to reconsider the hard fork.” Why the Drivechains vision (BIP300/301) is one worth fighting for, and why the payments use-case must be actuated to fulfill Satoshi’s vision The problem with Bitcoin’s “decel” culture, and why the lack of competition may be the root of the problem. This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you by my NEW sponsors: LayerTwo Labs — developing research, software and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on — a primitive for executing Bitcoin Defi transactions, with having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount.
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April 14 · 1 hr 11 min
Bitcoin Mining's Heatpunk Revolution | TYLER STEVENS
Tyler Stevens—author of Bitcoin Mining Heat Reuse and a leading voice in the space—joins the show to unpack the growing “heatpunk” movement in Bitcoin mining. Traditionally viewed as a drawback, excess heat from mining is being reframed by heatpunks as a valuable feature, e.g. to generate useful heat—like home heating or hot water. Use for these heat byproducts can effectively subsidize the cost of Bitcoin mining—making operations significantly more profitable, or even free, while contributing to higher hashrate and a more decentralized network. As Stevens puts it, “Heat reuse solves the security budget problem.” With block subsidies declining over time, mining incentives must evolve to remain sustainable. If Bitcoin mining can serve a dual purpose—securing the network while also fulfilling real-world energy needs—it has a path to long-term profitability, even in a low-fee environment. In this episode, Tyler and I discuss: What “Bitcoin Mining Heat Reuse” is and why it’s shaking up both solo and industrial miners’ thinking The different ways heat from Bitcoin miners can be used What the long-term impacts of mining heat reuse could be in the face of a dwindling block subsidy How Bitcoin mining could change the economics of the global heating industry What the impacts of heat reuse could be for megaminers and miner centralization This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you my NEW sponsors: LayerTwo Labs — developing research, software and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi — a trust-minimized collateralization primitive for native Bitcoin, powered by Sui Network smart contracts BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount.
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April 7 · 2 hr 25 min
The Untold History of Stablecoins | PHIL POTTER
There are few people as consequential in crypto history as Phil Potter, co-founder of Tether and creator of the world's first stablecoin. After trading Bitcoin in “Satoshi Square” amongst peers like Erik Voorhees, Charlie Shrem, the Winklevoss twins and others, Potter became known for two things: 1. Professionalizing Bitcoin trading via the development of Bitfinex—and managing the 2nd largest exchange hack in Bitcoin's history 2. Inventing stablecoins — arguably the most important piece of crypto-infrastructure outside of Bitcoin itself. Ultimately, Potter shares that stablecoins were “too successful,” adding that “anytime someone makes a lot of money really fast that they don’t understand… they think you’re a criminal.” In 2019, Phil stepped down from his role as CSO of Tether after a series of relentless personal, legal and regulatory attacks. In his first video interview since around that time — I’m thrilled to share the story of Tether that’s been waiting to be told. In this episode, Phil Potter shares: - What the early days of Bitcoin trading were like (think: in-person Bitcoin-cash trades in NYC’s Washington Square Park) - How Bitfinex revolutionized trading infrastructure for Bitcoin—and managed the second largest exchange hack of all time. - The Birth story of Tether + the dark side of being one of the most successful companies in US history. - How Phil managed the onslaught of regulatory, legal and personal attacks that followed Tether’s rapid success. This episode of Bitcoin Rails is brought to you my NEW sponsors: LayerTwo Labs — developing research, software and technologies for scaling Bitcoin via the integration of Drivechains (BIP 300/301) Hashi on — a primitive for executing Bitcoin Defi transactions, with having to trust a federated bridge or other centralized entity BitBox — an open-source Bitcoin-only hardware wallet, with smooth UX and no compromises on security. Check out Bitbox [dot] swiss and use code BITCOINRAILS to get a discount.
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March 26 · 1 hr 49 min
What Happened to Bitcoin Treasury Companies? | DAVID BAILEY & BRANDON GREEN
This most recent bull market was inarguably defined by one dominant narrative: the rise of Bitcoin treasury companies and their dramatic retracement as crypto "DATs" flooded markets. David Bailey, former CEO of Bitcoin Inc. (Bitcoin Magazine, Bitcoin Conference) — raised $760M for treasury company Nakamoto , which catapulted to a peak valuation of 33X MNAV before sliding down below MNAV after a seeming burst in treasury mania last year. David joins me and newly appointed CEO of Bitcoin Inc. Brandon Green to share the history of one of the most influential companies in Bitcoin history (Bitcoin Inc.), how their treasury play changed everything, and what we can expect from Bitcoin treasury companies moving through 2026 and beyond. In this episode, the three of us discuss: The history of Bitcoin Inc., and the rise of Bitcoin Magazine and Bitcoin Conference empire. The role of UTXOmgmt (VC and trading fund) in the team's strategy over time How the fund’s entry into Metaplanet and their subsequent seeding of nearly a dozen Bitcoin Treasury companies since The rise of Nakamoto and its subsequent 99% slide in price from ATHs How David sees the Treasury thesis playing out from here… and projected winners and losers when/if these companies rebound. This episode of Bitcoin Rails is powered by: Best In Slot — the leading API for Ordinals and BRC20 data aggregation and indexing. Spark — a statechains implementation advancing Bitcoin-powered payments. Citrea — a leading Bitcoin rollup technology and BitVM alliance contributor.
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March 17 · 1 hr 3 min
Building a Financial System on Bitcoin | WILLEM SCHROE
“People in finance understand the financial system, but not money. People in Bitcoin understand money, but not the financial system.” In a world where financial markets make up 70% of all money flow around the world — we have two choices: come up with technical solutions that enable these use-cases in a decentralized way, or simply accept that Bitcoin will be used in a custodial way whenever more complex use-cases are at play. Botanix CEO Willem Schroe is staunchly rejecting the latter — and attempting to solve some of the toughest challenges faced by the L2 and scaling landscapes (e.g. the “honeypot problem” that nearly all other L2s will ultimately face if not addressed). Willem and I break down the design space of Bitcoin L2s, why DeFi may be necessary for Bitcoin’s financial system to emerge, and how different technologies — like Spiderchains, BitVM, Lightning, and others — could eventually combine into a decentralized Bitcoin-native financial stack. In this episode, we discuss: - Why Bitcoin needs a financial system, not just payments (hint: without it, we'll end up like Gold) - The role of DeFi and stablecoins in Bitcoin adoption - The "honeypot problem" introduced by most Bitcoin bridges, and how implementing Spiderchains could be the solve - Combining Spiderchains, BitVM, and other models into the ultimate Bitcoin scaling stack This episode of Bitcoin Rails is powered by: - Best In Slot (@bestinslotxyz) — the leading API for Ordinals and BRC20 data aggregation and indexing. - Spark (@lightspark) — a statechains implementation advancing Bitcoin-powered payments. - Citrea (@citrea_xyz) — a leading Bitcoin rollup technology and BitVM alliance contributor.
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March 10 · 1 hr 31 min
Internet Capital Markets on Bitcoin | BINARI
“BRC 2.0 is positioning Bitcoin as the prime asset issuance layer — the asset tokenization network for the most valuable assets on earth.” Late last year, BRC20 maintainer team Best in Slot extended the protocol’s functionality to include EVM smart contracts at the indexing layer — making the world’s most valuable Bitcoin-native assets protocol “fully programmable.” This upgrade, dubbed “BRC 2.0,” triggered a wave of interest in programmable metaprotocols across the Bitcoin ecosystem — expanding metaprotocol usecases beyond memecoins, into more sophisticated DeFi applications like RWAs and stablecoins. In this episode, Best in Slot CEO Binari joins me for a full update on the protocol’s technical and social evolution post-BRC2.0 launch—spilling the tea on hard lessons learned in ecosystem building, right alongside his bull case for building “internet capital markets” on Bitcoin. In this episode, we discuss: The “internet capital markets” thesis for Bitcoin The unique role of Chinese investment communities in pushing Bitcoin assets forward How incentive structures for metaprotocols outperform those of L2s How programmable asset development could potentially protect Bitcoin’s security budget as the block subsidy declines Lessons from the protocol’s first pump-and-rug drama and how the community fought back with technical solutions that could push Bitcoin DeFi forward This episode of Bitcoin Rails is powered by: Best In Slot - the leading API for Ordinals and BRC20 data aggregation and indexing. Spark - a statechains implementation advancing Bitcoin-powered payments. Citrea - a leading Bitcoin rollup technology and BitVM alliance contributor.
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